NEW BEDFORD — President Barack Obama signed into law Thursday a bill removing a legal obstacle that prevented the U.S. from negotiating with Canada for increased catch limits on certain species of fish, especially yellowtail flounder.
New England fishermen can look forward to higher catch limits on trans-boundary species when the law takes effect. For one thing, more groundfish and scallops will be available without exceeding limits on bycatch.
"This is a very welcome piece of good news at a time when people in our fishery are under siege from arbitrary and unfair restrictions," U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass, said when the bill passed Congress last month.
"While this provision appears technical, people in the fishing industry of Greater New Bedford have told me that it's one of the most important things Congress could do to increase fishermen's ability to fish, and I'm very proud that we were able to accomplish it," he said.
Frank gave credit to U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, who helped push the bipartisan U.S.-Canada Transboundary Resource Sharing Understanding through the lame-duck Congress.
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